Monday, 25 September 2017

Cotswold Dog Days & Spotty Dog Lux

When you have a rather energetic dog such as my Dalmatian Lux for instance, it can be quite a nerve racking thought to entrust him to anyone other than yourself. Earlier this year when we went off to Crete for the week, I sent him off to a dog board (for those of you who don't know, it's essentially a holiday for dogs, where they get one to one attention, and it's an alternative to kennels).

I knew that Lux would not fare well in kennels, so this seemed like the best option for us all. Only Lux had never been left before and he must have felt like his world was crashing in on him, that we had left him forever. Suffice to say the poor guy who was caring for Lux that week did not have an easy time of it at all, I guess that might be why he wanted to return him a day earlier than planned, and why he rocked up back home just after 8am as opposed to the discussed 14:00 o clock...

Yes, leaving Lux is not something I make a habit of doing, and up until this weekend, I didn't dare let anyone else take him out again, let alone have him over night. I guess I have become slightly anxious because I know that he can be a rather large handful, but deep down he is a lovely boy just wanting to be involved in anything and everything that is going on.

When Lux goes out for a walk, it is almost as though he see's the world for the first time (every single day), all the sights, sounds and smells, the other people and of course the other dogs make for a very excited dog.

This weekend I pushed my anxiety aside and sent Lux off with Naomi of Cotswold Dog Days for a 5 mile round walk around the Cotswolds. I gave full disclosure about my not so little asbo puppy, I told her that he could be a handful and a down right monster at times, but this didn't phase Naomi and she said that she was more than happy to see how they got on if I was happy for him to go.

I decided that it would be nice for Lux to go, and it would be interesting to hear some feedback from Naomi on what she thought about Lux. At 2pm Naomi came and picked up Lux, and as soon as she arrived my mind was put at ease and I knew that Lux was in very good hands.

Naomi had even brought a car harness for Lux to wear in her car and explained that she had planned a 5 mile walk around Broadway, and provided me a time to expect them back.

This gave me around 3 hours at home without Lux, and it was such a strange feeling. Lux is always with me at home, so to walk around the house without having him follow me wherever I go (or do the laundry without him running off with a sock or two) was just very odd. It did however give me the chance to tidy the house from top to bottom.

I got a text just after 5pm letting me know that they had finished their walk and were on there way back home.

Naomi offers photographs of all the dogs that she takes out on her walks, and we were lucky enough to receive some absolutely gorgeous shots from Lux's walk with Cotswold Dog Days (Friends and family who have seen them have been as equally impressed as us!). When the images came through last night I felt a sudden prang, you know that feeling you get when you are proud of your kids? Yeah I got that for my dog!

I am planning on getting one or two of these shots put onto canvases, I have been meaning to get some done for a while but never found the right photo (and now I have a gorgeous selection!). Naomi must have read my mind when it came to the telephone box, because I was going to try and get a similar image myself (but I can never get Lux to co-operate!).

Naomi offers a very personal service to you and your dog, and I have been so impressed by the entire experience (and the gorgeous photos that you receive after).

Naomi delivered back one very tired spotty dog (Who pretty much slept for the rest of the evening), and she did absolutely amazing with him because he can be a real nightmare. I wouldn't hesitate in using Naomi and Cotswold Dog Days again in the future, and if you are local to the Cotswolds or will be visiting for a holiday at some point in the future then you can claim a 10% discount by mentioning #SpottyDogLux!